OPINION
The Chronicle
Ernest H. Pitt
Publisher Emeritus
1974-2015
617 N. Liberty Street
336-722-8624 I 41 j
WWW.WSCHRONICLE.COM V^ /
elaine Pitt Business Manager
Donna Rogers Managing Editor
wali D. pltt Digital Manager
Our Mission
The Chronicle is dedicated to serving the
residents of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County
by giving voice to the voiceless, speaking truth
to power, standing for integrity and
encouraging open communication and
lively debate throughout the community.
The Black
Press: 189 years
old and still
going strong
Media reports recently revealed that according to
a Gallup poll, Americans have only 20 percent high
confidence in newspapers these days. Of course,
they were talking about daily newspapers.
If a study had been done on community newspa
pers, we believe the statistics would be different,
maybe even reversed: that only 20 percent of
Americans don't have high confidence in communi
Photo by Doom Rogers
A monitor shows tweets flowing into 0NNPA2O16
beside a display of NNPA-member newspapers dur
ing the National Newspaper Publishers' annual con
vention on Friday, June 24, in Houston, Texas.
ty newspapers.
Now look at black community newspapers: The
Black Press was founded 189 years ago and is still
going strong.
The National Newspaper Publishers Association
(NNPA) convention in Houston, Texas, last week
shows that. The organization that represents 200
black newspapers in the United States is wired for
the 21st century. Convention-goers were tweeting
with photos constantly all during the convention
while large monitors showed the flow of tweets to
#NNPA2016. Sessions were being videotaped.
Laptops and tablets could be seen throughout the
convention. Digital audio recorders were there, too.
Newspapers sent digitally to NNPA were displayed
for all to see on presentation boards.
Discussions on branching into other minority and
underrepresented communities emerged, also.
But amid the new things were the old ones that
have made The Black Press great. Convention-goers
discussed issues that affect the black community,
such as health, wealth and the criminal justice sys
tem. Experts from across the nation joined publishers
and others in lively discussions.
Winston-Salem was represented two ways: with
The Chronicle and Reynolds American Inc. (RAI)
Services Co. Reynolds American sponsored the ses
sion "Criminal Justice Reform: The Issue of Menthol
and the African American Community." It was one
of the liveliest discussions during the convention as
the pros and cons of criminalization policies in the
United States and how they affect the black commu
nity were discussed.
The Federal Drug Administration is looking at
criminalizing menthol in cigarettes, which is used in
RAI products. A large amount of African-Americans
buy those types of cigarettes.
Amid the discussions and tweets came the time
for the newspaper publishers and their staffs to shine
for work produced in 2015.
The Chronicle, owned by Publisher Emeritus
Ernie Pitt, was among the newspapers vying for
awards.
A1 McFarlane, chairman of the NNPA
Foundation, which conducted the 2016 Merit
Awards, made this announcement at the awards din
ner: "We have discovered a new vitality. We are mas
ters of the niche."
McFarlane is owner of Insight News in
Minneapolis, Minn.
The Chronicle won one first-place award, for
Best Sports Section; two second-place awards, for
Best Layout and Design, Broadsheet, and Best
Special Section (for the National Black. Theatre
Festival publication); and one third-place award, for
the historic photo of the Mass Moral Monday March
in July in Winston-Salem, taken by staff reporter
photographer Tevin Stinson.
- "I believe, we ace about to do a new thing in The
Black Press," McFarlane said.
The Chronicle is proud to be a part of it.
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
SPEAKING of
MONSTERS
To The Editor:
Human nature today is no differ
ent than it was in the beginning. That
includes race, ethnicity, socio-eco
nomic status or religion. We are made
up of two opposing sides- one good,
the other is deceitfiil. Which one do
you feed? When the deceitful side is
fed, we use fear and ignorance to
divide and conquer. North Carolina's
HB2 is a prime example. According
to the majority of the General
Assembly, the LBG-T Community is
a monster. They've used a portion of
the Bible to portray these people as
Satan who comes to seek and to
destroy. What evidence has been pre
sented to suggest that this community
is attacking or frightening women
and children in public restrooms or
anywhere else for that matter?
Now let's examine the remainder
of this bill drawn up by the "good"
Christians in this state. These politi
cians ran some very ugly campaigns
to get to Raleigh. They told us a lot of
junk and what did they do? They
made laws that hurt the average citi
zen in the state. Another component
of HB2 prohibits city and county
governments ffom requiring private
contractors to pay a set wage for
awarded projects. The third compo
nent of this legislation prevents you
from using the state courts to file dis
crimination lawsuits against employ
ers. Filing a federal claim is much
more costly and time consuming than
a state case. Will businesses come to
North Carolina with good wages that
enable us to participate freely in the
economic system, stabilize our fami
lies, and have a decent quality of life
or will we be peons in a system that
makes the wealthy wealthier?
The politicians (from all parties)
tell us exactly what we want to hear;
however once elected, they remain
loyal to their big financial contribu
tors. What about their constitutents?
I'm just saying - speaking of mon
sters ...
Mildred S. Peppers
Winston-Salem
Following in
their footsteps
To the Editor:
When Muhammad Ali chal
lenged the system by refusing to
serve in the United States Army, he
was following the footsteps of other
historical African-Americans, who
also challenged the system such as:
Richard Allen, David Walker, Sarah
Parker Redmond, Nat Turner,
Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman,
Henry McNeal Turner, Jack
Johnson, Mary Church Terrell,
Marcus Garvey, Paul Robeson,
Elijah Muhammad, Adam Clayton
Powell, Jr., Rosa Parks,Martin
Luther King, Jr., and Louis
Farrakhan. There were others, but
are too numerous to name. Some of
these men and women were former
slaves that fought the system and
"powers that be" for their freedom,
civil rights, human rights, dignity,
manhood and womanhood. Some
even gave their lives for their
beliefs. They not only wanted to
make things better for themselves,
but also for society and humanity.'
Dr. Lenwood G. Davis
Winston-Salem
A lesson from
*
Huckleberry Finn
To the Editor:
Young and old can still learn
from Mark Twain's Huckleberry
Finn. Young Huck had a keen eye
for recognizing fraud, so he knew
when the self-proclaimed "King"
was pulling a con on the riverside
folks.
When candidate Trump proposes
immediate magical solutions to hurt
ing Americans, I believe that's the
kind of "King" he would be!
Are we as savvy as Huckleberry?
Ellen S. Yarbofough
Winston-Salem
Congresswoman Alma S. Adams
releases statement on announcement
for Supreme Court to hear appeal
from the State of North Carolina.
Congresswoman
will continue
to serve the 12th
To The Editor:
Today the United States Supreme
Court announced that it will take
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U11UCI ICV1CW UIC
redistricting case
impacting North
Carolina's 1st
and 12th
Congressional
Districts, of
which I serve in
the 12th.
Today's
decision will
allow the court
Adams
10 aeciae
whether or not the 1st and the 12th
Congressional Districts illegally ,
compacts minority communities into
those congressional districts.
As I have said before, this is a
wait-and-see process to determine
how this will impact my con
stituents. Therefore, I am focused
and committed to serving the current
12th Congressional District until
January 2017.
Congresswoman Alma Adams
(NC-12)"
Washington, D.C.
Statement from
NCDPon
TVump's Speech
To The Editor:
Trump talks tough on trade, but
his actions speak louder than his
words. Trump's own products are
made overseas. Trump ties are made
in
___ China.
^fl^AIGN ST
Mexcio. Trump furniture is made in
Turkey. Trump picture frames are
made in India, and Trump barware is
made in Slovenia. Hillary Clinton
has a strong record of standing up to
countries that break the rules, and
she has a comprehensive plan to
address unfair and illegal trade prac
tices as President.
Dave Miranda, spokesman
North Carolina Democratic Party
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